Dolphins get first win of season, then their second
BY JASON THOMPSON Gulf Breeze News jason@gulfbreezenews.com

Rhonda Randazzo/Gulf Breeze News Matt Catellier drives to the basket in the Dolphins’ 66-51 win over West Florida Tech.

The Gulf Breeze Dolphin basketball team, who’d lost their first seven games of the season by an average of 22 points, notched their first, and second, wins of the season in a six-day span last week.

Dolphins 66,

West Florida Tech 51

Gulf Breeze (2-7) shot a blistering 69 percent from the field in the first quarter (9-for-13) as the Dolphins beat the Jaguars (2-6) for their first win of the season.

Gulf Breeze scored their first seven points in the first 30 seconds of the game. Matt Patrick hit two free throws, Bryan Shreve hit a three pointer and Alec Cann stole a pass and fed David Hibberts for a layup.

Hibberts finished with a career-high 15 points, along with eight rebounds. Patrick finished the game with a doubledouble (10 points, 11 rebounds).

The Jags got to within 7-4 before the Dolphins scored the next eight. Four different Dolphins scored in the run.

Gulf Breeze led 24-16 after one quarter after a Stuart Franklin bucket. Franklin and the Dolphin reserves combined for 24 points in the victory.

Rhonda Randazzo/Gulf Breeze News Blake Rankin puts up a shot in the Dolphins’ 66-51 win over West Florida Tech.

West Florida Tech hit a threepointer to cut the Dolphin lead to four before Gulf Breeze scored seven of the next nine points.

Patrick had four of the seven in the run for Gulf Breeze, who led 32-24 at the half.

The momentum stayed with the Dolphins early in the second half as they scored the first 10 points. West Florida Tech would only get as close as 13 points the rest of the way.

Cann, Shreve and Blake Rankin all had seven points, while Matt Catallier had five, Derek Orban and Franklin four each, Marcus Smith, Dane Baker and Dustin Clements two each and Eric Mims one.

Baker had five rebounds in the win, while Hibberts and Mims had four steals and Shreve three.

Dolphins 52, Jay 41

A Patrick bucket late in the first half capped a 14-1 run and gave the Dolphins the lead for good over the Royals Saturday at the Milton Shootout.

Jay (3-3) scored the first six points of the game, but didn’t score the rest of the quarter. Gulf Breeze didn’t do much either, scoring only two field goals in the opening eight minutes. The Dolphins trailed 6- 5 after one.

Jay led by as many as 10 early in the second quarter before the Dolphins caught fire.

Patrick, who led the Dolphins with 12 points, scored six in the run. Gulf Breeze 23-21 at the half.

The score was 28-26 Gulf Breeze before the Dolphins closed out the third quarter with a 7-0 run.

A three-pointer by the Royals got them to within five early in the fourth quarter, but they’d get no closer.

Patrick also had eight rebounds to go with his 12

points. Shreve added 11 points and five steals, while Hibberts and Cann had nine each, Smith seven, Orban and Rankin two each and Catallier one.

The Dolphins will face Gainesville High in the opening round of the Bay Barnstormer Classic on Tuesday.

Dolphin JV 60,

West Florida Tech 38 Jeff White scored 19 points for

the Dolphins (2-7) , who outscored the Jags by 15 in the second and third quarters on Dec. 12.

Colin Kupris added 12 points, while Kyle Schnackenberg had 11. Dolphin ninth grade 53,

West Florida Tech 38

Joey Bodovetz had 16 points, while Nicky Schumacher as Gulf Breeze (2-6) began their threegame sweep of the Jaguars.